Montgomery Advertiser Will Be Even Less With NO AP

 

NEW YORK (AP) — The media company Gannett, (owner/Operator of The Montgomery Advertiser) the nation’s largest newspaper chain and publisher of USA Today, said Tuesday it would stop using journalism from The Associated Press later this month, severing a century-old partnership.

The decision “enables us to invest further in our newsrooms,” Gannett spokeswoman Lark-Marie Anton said. With more than 200 outlets, the chain represents more newspapers than any other company in AP’s U.S. membership.

A memo from Gannett’s chief content officer Kristin Roberts directed the chain’s editors to stop using stories, videos and images provided by AP on March 25. The memo, obtained by The Associated Press, was first reported by The New York Times.

“We are shocked and disappointed to see this memo,” said AP spokeswoman Lauren Easton. “Our conversations with Gannett have been productive and ongoing. We remain hopeful that Gannett will continue to support the AP beyond the end of their membership term at the end of 2024, as they have done for over a century.”

Neither company would discuss how much Gannett has been paying to receive AP content.

In an earlier era, when fees from U.S. newspapers provided AP with virtually all of its revenue, such a decision would have represented a financial earthquake for the news cooperative. But AP has diversified its services with the decline of newspapers and U.S. newspaper fees now constitute just over 10% of its annual income.